North and South
by JessenoSabaku
Summary: Once, they argued about whether the North or South Pole was colder. Buggy and Shanks, Buggy-centric. Drabbley. Style inspired by KathrynODriscoll's "Ironman" (find her on DeviantArt). K.


**Disclaimer: I own none of One Piece (but I can't live without it). THIS IS ALL NON-PROFIT WRITING, DONE ONLY FOR FUN AND WRITING CRITIQUE. ALL RIGHTS GO TO EIICHIRO ODA AND HIS PEOPLE. Please support the official release.**

INTRODUCTION: Just a burst of inspiration I had at the last minute before going to bed tonight. It's very hastily thrown together, and probably has a lot of errors because I'm kind of tired. Either way, it's something, and it's finally some One Piece!

I've always really liked Buggy and his dynamic with Shanks. I think there's great potential for Buggy in the future, so I hope to see even more of him as we go along in the series, if not just to have comic relief. I hope this fic can help you to see him in a different light. Also, the fic was inspired by a fic done by KathrynODriscoll on DeviantArt, called "Ironman." The style was, at least. Both fics deal with very different subject matters, but … well, maybe you can see the correlation for yourself. Maybe there's no correlation at all. Maybe I'm just tired and sleepy. Either way, I hope you enjoy this. Please give me feedback, and check out my other writings!

**(XXX)**

On the Oro Jackson, Shanks and Buggy were known for being the closest out of any pair on the ship—close enough that they always had their fists in each other's shirts. They were no strangers to the concept of drawing swords for the sake of each other in a fight, but when the waves were at peace and the crew merry, they always found something to fight about. Whether the battle was blue versus red, winter versus summer, or cannon versus sword, no one disagreed more than them.

Once, they argued about whether the North or South Pole was colder. Buggy said North, and Shanks, infuriating as ever, said South. Though their impending fist-fight was quickly broken-up, Buggy held a grudge for a long time, along with the many other grudges he had concerning that red-haired man.

He'd never cared much to ask Shanks to elaborate on his opinion, because there's "wrong" and "right" and the one who doesn't agree is "wrong." A pirate's very existence force-feeds his own "right" to all other pirates, marines, and anyone who wants to get in the way. Is it not "right" for a man who loves the sea to simply set sail with his crew without Marine permission? Is it not "right" for him to take what he pleases while he's on the water? Pirates will always fight about honor, or lack-thereof, and the law will always claim its own victims. In a world of treasure, you have to choose your own path leading towards it.

To Buggy, there was a simple reason why the North Pole was colder. The North Pole was at the top of the world, so like the North Star, it sat above everything else, overlooking the globe. Few people made the effort to travel there because of the difficulty in getting there, just like how few people can go into space and meet with the North Star, and that existence is a lonely one. No one to move around the snow, no warm bodies except those of the animals that inhabited those icy plains—so the air stayed frigid and cold, colder even than its twin on the bottom, which hid behind the shadow of the earth.

But even though he was certain he was right, his own answer bothered him. At first it hadn't, but after he swallowed the Bara-Bara fruit, a deep loathing sprang up in his mind. All he could think of in the ten-year delay to searching for his treasure was how much he hated Shanks and how unreasonable he was for choosing the South over the North Pole. And as he continued to think, he remembered how if you stood on the snow of the South Pole and looked into the sky at night, you could still find the North Star. By association with the North Star, the South Pole could also be "on top of the world," just the same as the North. But, Buggy thought, the South Pole was labeled as "South" for a reason. It'd always be the bottom-half, always looking down, and that was about as lonely and frigid as being unreachable while standing on the peak of the world.

In his Shichibukai days, he often fingered the brim of his hat, and contemplated the Marine logo emblazoned on its front. Nowadays, his followers were calling him 'The Star Clown,' and it reminded him every time of the man he hated, and of the South Pole. He wondered if Shanks ever thought about that argument like he did. If he ever thought about going to the South Pole to prove Buggy wrong. If Buggy had dared him to go that day on the Oro Jackson, Shanks probably would have made the trip. He would take any step necessary to prove Buggy wrong, because he simply could not accept any arguments Buggy had to make about anything. He never could. And Buggy could never allow him victory in a fight either. They would always be blue and red, winter and summer, cannon and sword.

Sometimes, Buggy thought to himself that he wished he'd asked Shanks why the South Pole was colder than the North. And when he started thinking that, he could never get rid of the wishful emotion it produced. Sometimes he entertained ideas of seeking out Shanks and rehashing the discussion—himself, a government dog, asking a yonko about a stupid argument years ago, even though he knew they'd never agree.

In the back of his mind, Buggy liked to believe Shanks thought about that stupid argument too, along with all the other useless confrontations they had in the past. Both sitting on top of their own respective thrones, with incredible influence that neither had been able to shake each other with.

Sitting alone in his cabin, Buggy kept thinking to himself, wondering if Shanks was thinking the same things too. And all the while Buggy was tapping his pen to the page of a fresh journal, wondering how he could adequately describe in words how two ends of the earth could be so close and yet so far apart.


End file.
